README.md

ORB-SLAM2

ORB-SLAM2 is a real-time SLAM library for Monocular, Stereo and RGB-D cameras that computes the camera trajectory and a sparse 3D reconstruction (in the stereo and RGB-D case with true scale). It is able to detect loops and relocalize the camera in real time. We provide examples to run the SLAM system in the KITTI dataset as stereo or monocular, in the TUM dataset as RGB-D or monocular, and in the EuRoC dataset as stereo or monocular. We also provide a ROS node to process live monocular, stereo or RGB-D streams. The library can be compiled without ROS. ORB-SLAM2 provides a GUI to change between a SLAM Mode and Localization Mode, see section 9 of this document.

#2. Prerequisites
We have tested the library in Ubuntu 12.04 and 14.04, but it should be easy to compile in other platforms. A powerful computer (e.g. i7) will ensure real-time performance and provide more stable and accurate results.

Pangolin

OpenCV

We use OpenCV to manipulate images and features. Dowload and install instructions can be found at: http://opencv.org. Required at leat 2.4.3. Tested with OpenCV 2.4.11.

Eigen3

Required by g2o (see below). Download and install instructions can be found at: http://eigen.tuxfamily.org. Required at least 3.1.0.

DBoW2 and g2o (Included in Thirdparty folder)

We use modified versions of the DBoW2 library to perform place recognition and g2o library to perform non-linear optimizations. Both modified libraries (which are BSD) are included in the Thirdparty folder.

ROS (optional)

We provide some examples to process the live input of a monocular, stereo or RGB-D camera using ROS. Building these examples is optional. In case you want to use ROS, a version Hydro or newer is needed.

#3. Building ORB-SLAM2 library and TUM/KITTI examples

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/raulmur/ORB_SLAM2.git ORB_SLAM2

We provide a script build.sh to build the Thirdparty libraries and ORB-SLAM2. Please make sure you have installed all required dependencies (see section 2). Execute:

cd ORB_SLAM2
chmod +x build.sh
./build.sh

This will create libORB_SLAM2.so at lib folder and the executables mono_tum, mono_kitti, rgbd_tum, stereo_kitti, mono_euroc and stereo_euroc in Examples folder.

TUM Dataset

Associate RGB images and depth images using the python script associate.py. We already provide associations for some of the sequences in Examples/RGB-D/associations/. You can generate your own associations file executing:

Execute the following command. Change TUMX.yaml to TUM1.yaml,TUM2.yaml or TUM3.yaml for freiburg1, freiburg2 and freiburg3 sequences respectively. Change PATH_TO_SEQUENCE_FOLDERto the uncompressed sequence folder. Change ASSOCIATIONS_FILE to the path to the corresponding associations file.

Building the nodes for mono, stereo and RGB-D

Add the path including Examples/ROS/ORB_SLAM2 to the ROS_PACKAGE_PATH environment variable. Open .bashrc file and add at the end the following line. Replace PATH by the folder where you cloned ORB_SLAM2:

Running Monocular Node

For a monocular input from topic /camera/image_raw run node ORB_SLAM2/Mono. You will need to provide the vocabulary file and a settings file. See the monocular examples above.

rosrun ORB_SLAM2 Mono PATH_TO_VOCABULARY PATH_TO_SETTINGS_FILE

Running Stereo Node

For a stereo input from topic /camera/left/image_raw and /camera/right/image_raw run node ORB_SLAM2/Stereo. You will need to provide the vocabulary file and a settings file. If you provide rectification matrices (see Examples/Stereo/EuRoC.yaml example), the node will recitify the images online, otherwise images must be pre-rectified.

Once ORB-SLAM2 has loaded the vocabulary, press space in the rosbag tab. Enjoy!. Note: a powerful computer is required to run the most exigent sequences of this dataset.

Running RGB_D Node

For an RGB-D input from topics /camera/rgb/image_raw and /camera/depth_registered/image_raw, run node ORB_SLAM2/RGBD. You will need to provide the vocabulary file and a settings file. See the RGB-D example above.

rosrun ORB_SLAM2 RGBD PATH_TO_VOCABULARY PATH_TO_SETTINGS_FILE

#8. Processing your own sequences
You will need to create a settings file with the calibration of your camera. See the settings file provided for the TUM and KITTI datasets for monocular, stereo and RGB-D cameras. We use the calibration model of OpenCV. See the examples to learn how to create a program that makes use of the ORB-SLAM2 library and how to pass images to the SLAM system. Stereo input must be synchronized and rectified. RGB-D input must be synchronized and depth registered.

#9. SLAM and Localization Modes
You can change between the SLAM and Localization mode using the GUI of the map viewer.

SLAM Mode

This is the default mode. The system runs in parallal three threads: Tracking, Local Mapping and Loop Closing. The system localizes the camera, builds new map and tries to close loops.

Localization Mode

This mode can be used when you have a good map of your working area. In this mode the Local Mapping and Loop Closing are deactivated. The system localizes the camera in the map (which is no longer updated), using relocalization if needed.